Alkyl esters, and in particular, alkyl hydroxybutyrates may be useful in a variety of different end-use applications. For example, alkyl hydroxybutyrates may be employed as pharmaceutical intermediates or as fragrances or other additives in a variety of consumer products. Recently, it has been discovered that alkyl hydroxybutyrates may be useful as organic cleaning solvents and, when used in combination with water and an optional surfactant, provide cleaning compositions that are highly effective, while being both environmentally benign and non-toxic. Current methods of obtaining alkyl hydroxybutyrates include extraction of a polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) from plant materials or other biomass, which is expensive, time consuming, and difficult to control. Additionally, this type of synthesis is nearly impossible to carry out on a large scale.
Thus, a need exists for an efficient method of producing an alkyl hydroxybutyrate, which can consistently provide a high-purity product in a time- and cost-effective manner.